Is Hrithik a reluctant superstar? “Superstardom is a waste of time,” he says, “There’s no truth in that. When your ego fills up, your creativity is switched off. I follow my instincts and look at where it’s got me.”

In 2008, before the release of Jodhaa Akbar, when we met at his Juhu home, he wore a sunny attitude. He was just back from shooting a commercial in Goa. At the time of Krrish in 2006, he gamely joked about being a superhero while a grey Persian cat walked gingerly around us. This interview, though, is going to be different.

I’m ushered into a room with an overpowering painting of his wife Sussanne and him, his green eyes staring at you from the frame. ‘Baba’ has gone for a haircut, say his staff. Hrithik eventually walks in wearing a black T-shirt. The mood is somewhat sombre.